SAN DIEGO – The much-anticipated finals between the best from New Jersey and the country against California's finest was grinded to a halt by a small, gritty, fearless team not even considered Northern California's most elite.
For the second night in a row, Newark Memorial (Newark, Calif.) stunned a nationally-ranked team, this time 48-41 over No. 14 Taft (Woodlands Hills, Calif.) in the National Division semifinals of the 20th MaxPreps Holiday Classic at Torrey Pines High School Tuesday night.
Andrews, shown in Gridley Tourney, had 14 points Tuesday.
File photo by Andy Garza
The little-regarded Cougars (10-1), with little offensive game, had plenty of defense and lots of Khion Sankey to move into Wednesday's finals against top-ranked St. Patrick (Elizabeth, N.J.), a 95-67 winner over Centennial in the other semifinal game.
Sankey scored 22 points, including three straight buckets to give his team a 44-41 lead with 1:17 left. After a Taft turnover, Kendall Andrew scored two more layups off beautiful offensive sets to finish the game on an 8-0 run over the final 2:32. He finished with 14.
Newark Memorial, which doesn't have a player taller than 6-foot-3 and no perimeter game to speak of, stunned No. 34 Price (Los Angeles) 43-42 the previous night.
"I guess we kind of spoiled everything," Newark Memorial coach Craig Ashmore said referring to a possible and probable Taft versus St. Patrick final. "We don't have the big, sleek guys you kind of expect. Physically we're just bigger and kind of rolly-polly. But I'll say this: we're pretty good at winning ugly."
It all looked beautiful to the Cougars, who just hung around and hung around while Taft kept missing and missing.
The Toreadors made just 14 of 44 shots (31.8 percent) and was just 8 of 17 from the free-throw line. Newark Memorial, despite giving up considerable length down low, made 22 of 45 shots, almost all on lay-ups.
Pierson Williams had 15 points and Bryce Jones 11 for Taft, which went on a 12-3 run starting late in the third quarter to take a 40-34 lead with 5:47 left in the game.
"Everyone in the gym probably thought they were going to run away with it," Sankey said. "We just kept plugging along, playing hard and doing what we do."
What they did was not give up a hoop the rest of the way, only a single free throw by Jones that gave Taft its last lead 41-40 with 2:32 remaining.
It was all Andrews and Sankey from there as they scored the Cougars' final 14 points.
"We just move, find the open spaces and find the open man," Sankey said.
Taft coach Derrick Taylor was complimentary of Newark Memorial, especially its effort. He wasn't nearly so pleased with his own team.
"In all my years I don't think I've ever had a team out-gutted before," said Taylor, who has coached 23 years at Taft, the last 10 as head coach. "But we were tonight.
"We've been rated very high all year but that's been based on potential. We're a very inexperienced team and Newark exploited that tonight."
Texas-bound De Andre Daniels, a 6-9 post for Taft, was saddled with foul trouble most of the night and played 18 minutes. He scored just two points.
"We're showing a lot of mental toughness and resolve," Ashmore said. "The kids have a lot of confidence in each other and that's showing through. How that translates tomorrow, we'll just have to see. Right now this feels very good."
Newark Memorial 48, Taft 41
Newark Memorial 8 11 12 17 - 48
Taft 13 7 16 5 - 41
NEWARK MEMORIAL (10-1)
Clark 2-5 2-2 6, Norris 1-5 0-0 2, Sankey 10-18 2-4 22, Presley 0-2 0-0 0, Byrd 1-2 0-0 2, Randle 1-2 0-0 2, Andrews 7-11 0-0 14. Totals 22-45 4-6 48.
TAFT (9-2)
Jones 3-8 4-11 11, K Williams 0-2 0-0 0, P. Williams 5-11 2-2 15, Daniels 1-4 0-0 2, Dinwiddie 1-8 0-0 3, Drew 1-4 0-0 2, Perry 0-1 0-0 0, Gathers 3-6 2-4 8. Totals 14-44 8-17 41.
3-point goals: P. Williams (T) 3, Dinwiddie (T), K. Williams (T). Rebounds: Newark 32 (Sankey 9), Taft 26 (Daniels 6). Fouled out: none.
St. Patrick (Elizabeth) 95, Centennial (Corona) 67: The scary part here is that Centennial, a 9-3 team with every facet of the game except a big man, played pretty well. The Huskies got 23 points by super slasher and Tulsa-bound Dominique Dunning and 21 from USC-bound super shooter Gelaun Wheelwright. They made 9 of 19 3-pointers and did a pretty good job of handling the ball and even defending.
But still,St. Patrick was almost 30 points better as the matched Centennial's speed, strength and resolve and added a pair of All-Americans in Duke-bound 6-3 guard Kyrie Irvingon (28 points) and 6-7 Michael Gilchrist (24 points, eight rebounds) to improve to 4-0.
Gilchrist, shown here Saturday, dominated inside Tuesday with 24.
Photo by Todd Shurtleff
Irving made 12 of his 17 shots, mainly driving to the basket and Gilchrist, rated the nation's top junior, had six dunks while making 9 of 11 attempts. He left the game early in the third quarter with a fourth foul, but came out on fire in the fourth scoring 10 of his team's first 12 points.
If those two weren't enough 6-3 junior guard Derrick Gordon made 9 of 14 shots, scored 22 and dished out a game-high nine assists. Point guard Kevin Boyle Jr. added eight points and six assists.
The Celtics, who share the ball beautifully, had 24 assists and only 12 turnovers.
"If they have a weakness I didn't see it," Centennial coach Josh Giles. "There's a reason why they are No. 1 in the country and they showed it tonight."
The Celtics shot a blistering 63 percent for the game (39 of 62) because they shared the ball and always found the open man. They had 24 assists compared to 11 for Centennial which largely had to create their own shots or make long-range jumpers.
Michael Caffey did play a stellar floor game for the Huskies with 13 points and seven assists.
"(Centennial) is very tough because the make shots, they play hard and they are well coached," St. Patrick coach Kevin Boyle said. "You can see they don't have any big guys so you expect you might be able to roll them. Well, you can't roll them. They are tough."
But not as tough as the Celtics, especially in the first half when they jumped to a 47-27 lead while making 69 percent of their shots, mainly on the break. Irving .
In the second half, Centennial heated up from beyond the arc, making 7 of 12 3-pointers.
"We let up a little defensively which I wasn't really pleased with," Boyle said. "But you have to give some credit to your opponent."
St. Patrick 95, Centennial 67
Centennial 15 12 21 19 - 67
St. Patrick 25 22 20 28 - 95
CENTENNIAL (9-3)
Wheelwrite 8-15 0-0 21, Perez 1-4 1-2 4, Logon 0-1 0-0 0, Caffey 2-7 7-9 13, Dunlap 2-3 0-0 4, Dunning 7-18 8-12 23, Ransom 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 21-50 16-23 67.
ST. PATRICK (4-0)
Boyle Jr. 3-7 1-2 8, Lane 0-1 0-0 0, Irving 12-17 2-3 28, Plummer 3-6 0-0 6, Daniell 1-2 0-0 2, Dobin 0-1 0-0 0, Gilchrist 9-11 6-7 24, Gordon 9-14 4-6 22, Kinman 1-2 0-0 3, Colbert 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 39-62 13-18 95.
3-point goals: Wheelwright 5, Perez, Caffey 2, Dunning, Boyle, Irving 2, Kinman. Rebounds: Centennial 26 (Wheelwright 6), St. Patrick 34 (Gilchrist 8). Fouled out: Ransom.
Consolation play
Price (Los Angeles) 62, Bishop O'Dowd (Oakland) 49: It's not easy to get up for a consolation game when you were banking on playing in the semifinals.
But 6-6 Cal-bound wing Allen Crabbe took the professional approach and scored 23 points and grabbed seven rebounds whille teammate Casey Trujeque added 14 points and six assists as the Knights came back strong following a disheartening 43-42 loss to Newark Memorial the following night.
"We're not losing two at this tournament," said Crabbe, who made 7 of 11 shots and all four of his free throws to help his team improved to 12-1. "We couldn't do anything about last night. We just needed to move on and we did."
Price actually looked a little tired and uninspired until star 6-9 forward Richard Solomon picked up his fourth foul midway through the third quarter.
O'Dowd (5-3), which got 11 points from sophomore Richard Longrus, looked much more determined and hungry but eventually the Dragons just ran out of gas. It didn't help that highly-touted 6-8 sophomore Brandon Ashley fouled out early in the fourth quarter.
The Dragons, with an impressive and large front court, missed a lot of interior tries. They made just 39 percent of their shots (20 of 51) and was outscored at the line 13-5.
Ashley finished with eight points and nine rebounds but in only 21 minutes. He also fouled out in Monday's 53-46 loss to Taft.
Mesa (Ariz.) 60, Fairfax 57: Jahii Carson cemented himself as the most dominant player in the tournament with yet another monster game, bringing Mesa back from a deep hole.
Carson, shown here Saturday, can get a shot anywhere on court.
Photo by Todd Shurtleff
The scintillating 5-foot-11 junior guard, who has already committed to Oregon State, scored his team’s final 15 points and finished with 30 as Mesa outscored Fairfax 25-14 in the fourth quarter.
Carson, who has 73 points in three games, is averaging 24.3 points per game. He’s had to do much of his team’s offense work by himself because 6-6 post Blondy Baruti is still out with a leg injury. Mesa, which improved to 9-2 is ranked No. 1 in Arizona by MaxPreps.com.
Fairfax ( 8-4) got 18 points from Donte mcFrazier and 12 by Jordan Weathers.
Lutheran 71, Compton 65: Grant Jerrett, a 6-8 sophomore, continued to be one of the most lethal scorers in the tournament with 29 points and nine rebounds as Lutheran won a nick-and-tuck game with the Tarbabes (3-8). C.J. Cooper had 15 points and seven rebounds and Eric Cooper added 11 for Lutheran (7-5). Compton got 16 points from Cliff Sims and 14 each by Dazjae Hill, Allan Guei and Anthony January.
Ironwood Ridge (Ariz.) 60, Franklin (Seattle, Wash.) 56 (OT): Matt Walker scored 20, Mitch Fischer 11 and Jan Maehlen 10 as Ironwood improved to 10-3. Kyle Thompson had 21 and Rio Adams 15 for Franklin (3-4), which lost its third straight game in the tournament.
Leuzinger 49, McClymonds 48: A 20-footer by Gary Williams at the buzzer failed and Leuzinger (6-6), which made just 32 percent of its shots survived. Aqueel Quinn had 11 points and six rebounds for the winners, while Lawrence Otis led McClymonds (6-6) with 11 points.
Mayor’s Cup
Torrey Pines 78, La Jolla Country Day 58: In a semifinal game played at Torrey Pines, the host school got 27 points from Nick Kerr with his dad, Suns GM and former NBA guard Steve Kerr in the stands (see more on that later). Torrey Pines (11-1) outscored LJCD (8-3) 24-16 in the third quarter to take control. Sage Burmeister led LJCD (8-3) with 18 points.
National Division
Wednesday's schedule
At Torrey Pines HS
McClymonds vs. Compton, 9:10 a.m.
Bishop O'Dowd vs. Yale Secondary, 10:45 a.m.
Price vs. Eisenhower, 12:20 p.m.
Leuzinger vs. Lutheran, 1:55 p.m.
Major's championshp: Torrey Pines vs. St. Mary's-Stockton, 3:30 p.m.
American championship: Los Osos vs. La Costa Canyon, 5:05 p.m.
Third-place National: Taft vs. Centennial, 6:40 p.m.
National championship: Newark Memorial vs. St. Patrick, 8:15 p.m.
American Division
Tuesday's scores
LA Cathedral 61, Roosevel 56
Birmingham 68, Simi Valley 64
Campbell Hall 58, James Logan 55
Winward 56, Hungtington Beach 55
Long Beach Jordan 55, Oakland 50
Los Alamitos 57, Miramonte 51
Semifinals
La Costa Canyon 57, St. Joseph Notre Dame-Alameda 55
Los Osos 81, Foothills Christian 77
Wednesday's schedule
At La Costa Canyon HS
Simi Valley vs. The Rock, 8 a.m.
Birmingham vs. Roosevelt, 9:35 a.m.
James Logan vs. Huntington Beach, 11:10 a.m.
Campbell Hall vs. Windward, 12:45 p.m.
Oakland vs. Miramonte, 2:20 p.m.
Long Beach Jordan vs. Los Alamitos, 3:55 p.m.
Foothills Christian vs. St. Joseph Notre Dame, 5:30 p.m.
Senator's Cup Division
Tuesday's scores
Mayfair 78, The Rock 38
Washington Prep 58, Cienga 57
Folsom 82, Community Charter 62
Francis Parker 57, Spanish Springs 27
San Diego Cathedral 57, Pacific Hills 42
Semifinals
Chaparral 79, Yale Secondary 60
Marantha 64, Desert Vista 58
Wednesday's schedule
At Cathedral HS
Mayfair vs. La Cathedral, 9:35 a.m.
Cienga vs. Community Charter, 11:10 a.m.
Washington Prep vs. Folsom, 12:45 p.m.
Spanish Springs vs. Pacific Hills, 2:20 p.m.
Francis Parker vs. San Diego Cathedral, 3:55 p.m.
Yale Secondary vs. Desert Vista, 5:30 p.m.
Championship
Chaparral vs. Marantha, 7:05 p.m.
Governor's Cup Division
Tuesday's scores
Temecula Valley 73, St. Joseph-Santa Maria 63
Upland 78, RBV 38
Tesoro 62, Ribet Academy 52
Catalina Foothills 63, Mesa 61
Carlsbad 50, Rancho Bernardo 48
Ponderosa 48, Santa Margarita 41
Semifinals
Vista Del Lago 58, Brea Olinda 48
College Park (Texas) 50, Poway 45
Wednesday's schedule
At Rancho Bernardo HS
Temecula Valley vs. RBV, 8 a.m.
Ribet Academy vs. TBA, 9:35 a.m.
Tesoro vs. Catalina Foothills, 11:10 a.m.
Rancho Bernardo vs. Santa Margarita, 12:45 p.m.
Carlsbad vs. Ponderosa, 2:20 p.m.
Brea Olinda vs. Poway, 3:55 p.m.
Championship
Vista Del Lago vs. College Park, 5:30 p.m.
Major's Cup Division
Tuesday's scores
Eisenhower 85, College Park 67
Palm Desert 75, Bakersfield Christian 57
Yucipa 80, Rim of the World 68
La Jolla 57, Flintridge Prep 51
Westview 52, Temescal Canyon 49
Semifinals
St. Mary's-Stockton 50, Cowichan 33
Torrey Pines 78, La Jolla Country Day 58
Wednesday's schedule
At Westview HS
St. Joseph-Santa Maria vs. Upland, 8 a.m.
Bakersfield Christian vs. Rim of the World, 9:35 a.m.
Palm Desert vs. Yucipa, 11:10 a.m.
Flintridge Prep vs. Temescal Canyon, 12:45 p.m.
National consolations: Fairfax vs. Ironwood Ridge, 2:20 p.m.
National consolations: Franklin vs. Mesa, 3:55 p.m.
La Jolla vs. Westview, 5:30 p.m.
Cowichan vs. La Jolla Country Day, 7:05 p.m.
